Samsung's torture tests for home appliances (pictures)

The Korean electronics giant develops and tests its washing machines, refrigerators, and other appliances at its headquarters in Suwon, South Korea. CNET gives you a tour.

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Shake it, baby

Machines in Samsung's digital appliances facility in Suwon, South Korea, shake washing machines and other appliances to simulate the bouncing of a truck. Machines will make sure the packaging is sufficient by dropping the appliances, shaking them, and putting them in high humidity. The shaking will last for about four hours for each appliance.

Hot and humid

A large chamber in Samsung's digital appliances lab in Suwon, South Korea, tests packages to make sure they can withstand the shipping process. The machine turns up the heat and humidity to simulate the conditions of a truck.

Brrrr

Samsung has specially built labs to develop and test its air conditioning units. It has re-created outdoor conditions, including winter temperatures, as well as high elevations for systems that would be installed in high-rise buildings.

You're getting cooler

One appliance that Samsung makes is air conditioners. It puts the machines through many tests to make sure they work correctly. In this case, the company has build a sort of fake house inside its digital appliances lab. Bright lights shine at the building, heating it up. The company then measures how quickly and evenly its air conditioners cool the room. It has thermometers hanging from the ceiling all around the room to test the temperature in all areas.

Digital appliances in Digital City

Samsung's digital appliance lab is housed in one of the oldest buildings on its Suwon, South Korea, campus. The company is constantly constructing new offices and labs in the area, which is calls Digital City. The digital appliances building has green stripes along the side and the English phrase, "Smart Thinking, Simple Living. Digital Appliances."

How smart is your washer?

Samsung's digital appliances building in Suwon, South Korea, includes loading docks to move all of the large boxes. Development for its newest appliances happens within the buildings on the campus. Samsung aims to be No. 1 in the home appliances business by 2015 by adding innovative new features and smarts. In the US, the Korean company currently ranks in fifth place.